Swiss National Bank Cuts Stake in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company $WTW

Swiss National Bank lessened its position in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW) by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 285,810 shares of the company’s stock after selling 15,100 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank owned approximately 0.30% of Willis Towers Watson Public worth $98,733,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in WTW. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,368 shares of the company’s stock worth $429,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 7.6% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 2,588 shares of the company’s stock valued at $875,000 after buying an additional 182 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 16.9% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,400 shares of the company’s stock valued at $811,000 after buying an additional 347 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 38.6% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 140 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the period. Finally, AGF Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 18.5% in the second quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 9,654 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,959,000 after acquiring an additional 1,508 shares during the period. 93.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Down 1.8%

WTW opened at $289.26 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.62. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company has a 12 month low of $275.60 and a 12 month high of $352.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 2.21 and a quick ratio of 2.21. The business has a 50-day moving average of $313.03 and a two-hundred day moving average of $323.59.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $8.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.93 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $2.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.87 billion. Willis Towers Watson Public had a net margin of 16.53% and a return on equity of 20.91%. Willis Towers Watson Public’s revenue was down 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $8.13 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company will post 17.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.96 per share. This represents a $3.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. This is an increase from Willis Towers Watson Public’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. Willis Towers Watson Public’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.47%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on WTW. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $351.00 to $366.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Willis Towers Watson Public from $375.00 to $388.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Evercore upped their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $383.00 to $390.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Wall Street Zen raised Willis Towers Watson Public from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their price target on Willis Towers Watson Public from $365.00 to $345.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Willis Towers Watson Public has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $371.50.

Willis Towers Watson Public Profile

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ: WTW) is a global advisory, broking and solutions company that helps organizations manage risk, optimize benefits and cultivate talent. The firm combines insurance brokerage and risk management capabilities with human capital and benefits consulting, actuarial and analytics services, and technology-enabled solutions. Willis Towers Watson serves a broad client base that includes multinational and mid-sized corporations, public sector organizations, insurers and investment managers.

The company’s core activities encompass commercial and reinsurance brokerage, risk transfer and risk-financing advice, and claims advocacy, alongside employee benefits and retirement consulting.